Vacuum-conduit system.



'Patented 11111.25, 1913.

0. P. P'ETBRSEN VACUUM CONDUIT SYSTEM.

APPLICATION rum) 11111.18, 1912.

OSCAR F. PETERSEN, OF DES MOINES, IOWA.

Specification of Letters Patent.

VACUUM-CONDUIT SYSTEM.

'Patented Feb. 25,1913.

Application .-led March 18, 1912. .Serial No. 684,415.

To all 'whom t may concern Be it lmown that l, @scan F. Pn'rnRsnN, citizen of the =United States :of America, and resident of Des Moines, Polk count-y, Iowa, have invented a new and useful Vacuum- Conduit System, of which the following is a specication.

The object of this invention is to provide en improved construction for lconduit systems.

A further object of this invention is to provide means for seeding a .conduit system in order that a partial vacuum may fbe created therein yfor the purpose 4of minimizing the conductivity with vrespect to iheat.

A further object of this invention is to provide improved means for sea-ling lateralls relative to the mains of a 'conduit system.

A further object of this .invention is to provide means for sealing man-'holes of a conduit system.

My invention consists primarily in the production of a partial vacuum in a conduit system.

My invention consists further in the oonstruction incident to the production of a .partial vacuum in a conduit system.

fasesteam, hot air, ;hotor cold water,

My invention consists further in the construction, arrangement and combination of elements hereinafter setforth, .pointed out in my claims and illustrated by the accompanying drawing, in which- Figure 1 is a plan, partly in section, illustrating my improved construction. Fig. 2 ,is a crosssection of a preferred Jform 'of my improved conduit on the indicated line .2--2 of sFig. land enlarged relative thereto. F ig. '3 is a cross-section through a preferred f torm of man-holebi` my improved construction, on the indicated line 3-3 vof Fig. l and enlarged relative thereto. In Fig. 1 -I have shown open ditches containing the main and laterals and a man-hole in horizontal section.

In :the construction of fthe device as shown .the .numeral 10 designates an inner conduit, preferably made of wood and adapted to contain and support roller stands 11 on which ypipes y12 are carried. 'The pipes l2 may fbe -used for Iconveying any `iiuids, such gas tor illmnirmting or fuel purposes, oil, beer, refrigerating liquids or gases and the like, and are wholly spaced trom the inner vsurfaces ofethe inner 'conduit 10. I -prefer to 'employ stands v111 for lsupporting ithe .pip 12 as they .do meot hinder expansion or mitnimand a closin eral pipes 2 or tion of ythe pipes longitudinally under changes of temperature. A :casing 13, pret erably made of wood, surrounds, .entirely incloses and is spaced from the inner yconduit '10 and forms an air chamber '14 between them, which air chamber is unbroken except for blocks or stringerel -15, preerably made of wood, which .blocks or stringers asie mounted ibetween the bottom of the inner conduit and fthe Ibottom of the casing 'beneath the roller stands 11. A 'lining L6 of any suitable 4material such as asbestos, tar paper, ifelt, burlar), or the like, surrounds, incluses and lcontacts with the outer surface of the casing 13 and may tbe secured lthereto in any conventional way-"A jacket L7 Iof concrete surrounds, incluses and contacts with the outer surface of the .lining 16. The jacket- 17 is omiefl with superposed flangiftudinal conduits o any size and inany desired number such as are indicated xby fthe numerals -18, 19, 20 in Figs. -2 .and 8, which conduits may be employed to contain -electric, telegraph or telephone wires, epeaki tubes, pneumatic tubes and the like. Ea

end portion of the :conduit main built es described extends through and is built into the wall Q1 of-a man-hole, the .mam-holes occurring at stated intervals through the length oft the main. Projections 22 extend inwardly from the Wall 211 .of the man-hole :plate 23, preferably off Wood, :loosely cverlies said projections and isfoovered by 'lining 24 of asbestos, zpafpecr, burlap or the like. A bed of sand'- is placed on the lining 24 and together with said vlining and lclosing pla-te .edectively seals the iower portion of the man-hole which is in communication Iwith the .inner conduit i0. End portions of the air chamber :14 lesditcent Ithe manholes pali-eferablyl are closed .by cleats 26 so as to 'cut off ycomniunication -between said chamber and the mafniolae. The pipes 12 may extend across the mimhole `from one conduit 10 to another. Any contents of the superposed conduits 18, i9, Q0 may extend .across the manfliole or be connected to apparatus inthe manhole such as meters, transformers and the ,like (not shown). Lateral pipes 97, such .as servite pipes, may :communicate with the fpipes l2 and extend laterally through the conduit 10, air 14, casing 13, lining x16 and jacket '1?7 Ito any .desired points. heee latnervine (pipes may fbe narntained in lesser conduits idenml the main conduit above described, but l have illustrated them in Fig. l as not so contained but extending through the earth only and in contact therewith. It is desirable to seal the exit oiLl the lateral pipes from the main conduit and to that end I have provided spaced gates 28, 29 in the lateral ditches 530 and a Filling of sand 3l between said gates, the filling of sand surrounding the lateral pipes and preferably inclosing and concealing jointsI whereby the service pipesI are attached to the taps from the main pipes.

In the practical use of the conduit and man-holes as illust-rated and `above dcscribed, a partial Vacuum is created by pumping out a portion of the air in they inner conduit l0 and in the lower portion of the man-holes. Such partial vacuum minimizes conductivity and maintains and conserves desired temperature of the con tents of the pipes l2. This conservation is of great advantage in conveying steam, hot air, hot water, beer, or refrigcrating materials through the pipes l2 in that. it provides for the delivery of the fluids at a temperature diiiering little it any from that at which the fluids are introduced to the main pipes. The use of partial vacuum in the manner described is of great advantage in that it eliminates the necessity of insulating the pipes 12 by any of the expensive and cumbersome methods-commonly used, such as by superposed Wooden jackets separated by alternate air spaces and composition linings, and it also permitsv unrestricted expansion and contraction of the iron pipes without damage to the insulating means.

I do not desire to be understood as limiting myself to the precise construction illustrated and described herein as such construction may be modified in many particulars and to large degree without departing from the primary object of my invention.

I claim as my inventiond 1. A conduit system constructed .tor the creation of a partial Vacuum and comprising an inner conduit, a casing surrounding and spaced from the inner conduit, a lining surrounding said casing, a jacket surrounding said lining, a manhole intersecting said conduit, casing, lining and jacket, and a main pipe in said inner conduit extending across said manhole, the spaces between the conduit and casing being sealed and the mouth of the manhole being sealed. 'i

2. A conduit system adapted to be buried in the earth, comprising spaced conduits,

` a manhole intersecting said conduits. a main pipe in the inner conduit extending across Said manhole, and means permitting a partial vacuum around said pipe, which means consists of devices for transversely closing and sealing against air passage the space between the conduits and the entrance to the manhole.

i l i i 3. A conduit system, comprising an inner conduit, a casing surro-unding and spaced from the inner conduit, a lining surrounding said casing, a jacket surrounding said lining. a sealed manhole intersecting said conduits, and a main pipe in said inner conduit extending across said manhole.

4. A conduitsystem, comprising an inner conduit, a casing surrounding and spaced from the inner conduit, means for closing end port-ions of the space between the inner conduit and casing, a lining surrounding said casing. a jacket surrounding said lining, and a main pipe in said inner conl duit.

A conduit system, comprising an inner conduit, a casing surrounding and spaced from the inner conduit, a lining surrounding said casing, a jacket surrounding said lining, a main pipe in the inner conduit and superposed conduits built into said jacket.

6. A conduit system, comprising an inner conduit, a casing surrounding and spaced from the inner conduit, a lining surrounding said casing, a jacket surrounding said lining, a man-hole communicating with the inner conduit, a closing plate removably and replaceably mounted transversely ot said man-hole, a lining on said closing plate, and a sand bed on said lining.

. 7 A conduit system, comprising an inner conduit, a casing surrounding and spaced from said inner conduit, means for closing end portions of the space between the inner conduit and casing, a lining surrounding said casing, a jacket surrounding said. lining, a man-hole communicating with the inner conduit, a closing plate removably and replaceably mounted transversely of said man-hole, a lining on said closing plate, and a sand bed on said lining.

8. A conduit system, comprising an inner conduit, a casing surrounding and spaced from the inner conduit, a. lining surrounding said casing, a jacket surrounding said lining, superposed conduits built into said jacket, a man-hole communicating with the inner conduit, a closing plate removably and replaceably mounted transversely of said man-hole, a lining on said closing plate, and a sand bed on said lining.

9. A conduit system, comprising an inner conduit, a casing surrounding and spaced from the inner conduit, a lining surrounding said casing, a jacket surrounding said lining. a main pipe in the inner conduit. a lateral pipe leading from the main pipe through one wall ot the main conduit,

spaced gates surrounding said lateral pipe, and a sand seal between said spaced gates.

10. A conduit system, comprising an inner conduit, a casing surrounding and spaced from the inner conduit, means for closing end portions of the space between the inner conduit and casing, a lining surrounding said casing, a jacket surrounding said lining, a main pipe in the inner conduit, a lateral pipe leading from the main pipe through one Wall of the main conduit, spaced gates surrounding said lateral pipe, and a sand seal between said spaced gates.

11. A conduit system, comprising an inner conduit, a casing surroundin and spaced from the inner conduit, a lining surrounding said casing, a jacket surrounding said lining, superposed conduits built into said spaced gates surrounding said lateral pipe,

and a sand seal between said spaced gates. Slgned b me at Des Moines, Iowa, this 18th day o March, 1911. Y

OSCAR F. PETERSEN.

Witnesses:

S. C. SWEET, EARL M. SINCLAIR. 

